Protect your kids from harmful diseases

MANILA, Philippines - As young parents, it is natural that you worry your kids are left alone in school five days of the week. Will they know how to fend off harmful germs and bacteria while they interact with their classmates? What if they come home with invasive diarrhea caused by their dirty hands while eating their midday snacks?

Instead of fretting over your kids while they are at school, it is best to teach them how they can protect themselves from disease-causing germs throughout the day with these four easy steps:

• Sneeze or cough into a tissue or handkerchief. You should teach your kids to cover their mouths when coughing or sneezing to avoid spreading germs into the air, infecting other kids around them. With germs ever present, it is easy to transmit bacteria to other kids as they tend to explore their environment and accomplish tasks with their hands. 

• Give them the necessary shots. The rainy months are more than just cold weather and cancelled classes — it’s also the season for particular diseases for children. The flu and the good old cough and colds are the two biggest disease risks that children can catch, and one good way to prevent it is to get them vaccinated.

For coughs and colds, get them on a nutritious diet along with the necessary supplements to keep their immune system strong.

• Frequent hand washing. The frequent hand-to-mouth activity and excessive curiosity of the children in school is a common concern. Teach your kids to wash their hands frequently with soap and water. It is the most effective way to avoid getting sick from harmful germs and bacteria. After playing games on dirty classroom floors, the use of mechanical friction and soap and water is useful in removing microorganisms and other contaminants. You should instill in your kids the importance of hand washing as the basic requirement for proper hygiene.

• Use a trusted hand sanitizer. For the most part of the day, your kids maybe frequently on the move and may not have a ready access to running water to keep their hands clean. To keep them protected anytime, anywhere, the next best thing would be to have a hand sanitizer within their reach. Hand sanitizers can be found just about everywhere, whether in school, at home or in the grocery store.

According to scientific studies, the use of alcohol-based hand sanitizers by children significantly reduces the transmission of gastrointestinal disorders.

The studies also found a positive correlation between increased use of hand sanitizers and decreased risk of respiratory illnesses.  

Additionally, hand sanitizers have been shown to kill bacteria such as Staphylococcus aureus, Salmonella, and Streptococcus pneumonia.

One trusted brand of hand sanitizers is Puregel by Kohl Industries Inc. Puregel has the recommended ethyl alcohol content of 68 percent that effectively eliminates 99.9 percent of disease-causing bacteria.

Puregel comes in a patented rubber holder, which makes it easy to attach to your kids’ bags.

Puregel has five scent variants: Lemon Meringue, Frost Berry, Floral Paradise, Spring Breeze and Crisp Apple Bite. It is available at all Mercury Drug stores, National Bookstore, SM Supermarket, Waltermart, SM Savemore, SM Hypermart, Robinson’s Supermarket, Shopwise, Office Warehouse and Rustan’s outlets nationwide.